The present invention relates generally to mobile support stands of the type used to support and move various types of equipment, and is particularly concerned with the type of support stands used in the medical field such as wheeled IV stands with hooks for suspending IV's and optionally supporting other medical equipment such as pumps and monitors.
Mobile support stands are well known in the medical field in which a relatively long vertically extending pole is mounted on a wheeled base for moving the equipment between different locations. The base must be relatively broad so as to support the equipment without tipping even when transported on a ramped surface.
Single pole mobile support stands of this type typically have a wheeled base of relatively small area. Multiple IV stands are often needed for critically-ill patients requiring a larger number of IV's and monitors. Multiple pole IV stands are known which have up to four IV poles on a single wheeled base. These stands have to have a relatively broad wheeled base in order to provide a stable support for the weight of IV's and medical equipment carried on the stand, so that the stand does not tend to tip over. These stands have an elongate base with legs projecting outwardly in opposite directions from each end of the base, each leg carrying a caster or wheel. The leg must have a relatively wide span to provide the needed stability, and thus the stand takes up quite a lot of room beside the bed, reducing access to the patient. In some cases, the stand is secured to the bed via cable ties, which is inconvenient. Also, if a bedridden patient must be moved for treatment purposes, the stand must be moved with the bed and will take up an excessive amount of room in hospital corridors and in elevators and is very hard to maneuver single handedly by one individual. Typically, up to three and sometimes four attendants are needed to transport a person in bed with multiple IV stands.